


Get a Clue

by funnygirlthatbelle13



Category: Critical Role (Web Series)
Genre: College AU, Costume Party, Drunk driving reference, Drunken Confessions, F/M, Modern AU, Molly is Alive Cuz I Said So, Pining, Rest of the Mighty Nein feature
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-07
Updated: 2020-07-07
Packaged: 2021-03-05 05:06:54
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,793
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25128979
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/funnygirlthatbelle13/pseuds/funnygirlthatbelle13
Summary: Widojest Week 2020 Day Two: Dressing UpWhen the Mighty Nein have a small murder mystery costume party at the girl’s house off campus, Caleb ends up enjoying himself more than expected and revealing some things he hadn’t meant to.
Relationships: Jester Lavorre/Caleb Widogast
Comments: 12
Kudos: 59
Collections: Widojest Week 2020





	Get a Clue

**Author's Note:**

> Happy day two, everybody! Hope you enjoy!

Caleb looked stupid. There was no way around it. He should never have shaved off his beard.

 _You were going to shave it off soon anyway,_ a snide voice in his head reminded him, _One night with a mustache won’t kill you._

He sighed. It was only for one night. No one would see him except his friends, and then, he could shave it off in the morning. He pulled out his phone and began typing a text to Jester.

_It’s a good thing I love you, or otherwise, I’d be regretting this._

Immediately, he deleted the text. There was no way he was going to risk her taking that literally (even if it was true). Instead, he stared at his reflection and sighed once more.

“Time to get going, mon ami,” he said in what he hoped was a Belgian accent.

Glancing around his dorm, Caleb desperately hoped that none of his residents saw him on his way out.

As he began to drive off campus, Caleb noticed a familiar figure walking alone.

“What did you do to make Caduceus leave you?”

Fjord turned, grinning.

“He’s picking up the catering for the girls. Can I get a ride please? It’s cold.”

“Come on,” Caleb said with a grin.

Fjord hopped in the car as Caleb began playing his Mighty Nein playlist.

“Thanks,” Fjord said as the car began to move, “But, um, who the fuck are you dressed as?”

“I could ask you the same thing,” Caleb replied, eyeing Fjord’s cream sweater, tan coat, and colorful scarf.

“I’m Ransom, you know, from _Knives Out_.”

Caleb shook his head as he turned right.

“Come on, you didn’t even see a trailer for it?”

“I only go to the movies if Jester or Veth drags me.”

Fjord chuckled. “Alright, well, I’m Chris Evans in that movie.”

Caleb nodded, though he was less focused on Fjord’s costume than his own nerves. Even if it was only his closest friends, a party was still a party and he was still very much an introvert.

They spent the rest of the short drive listening to music until they reached the Victorian house the Jester, Beau, and Veth rented together. Caduceus’ car was already in the driveway.

“Let’s go,” Fjord said as they exited the car.

“There you fuckers are!” Beau shouted from the front porch, where she was drinking a martini, “What took you so long?”

“Who the hell are you supposed to be?” Fjord asked, staring at Beau’s tuxedo.

“The name’s Bond, James Bond,” Beau said in a failed attempt at a Sean Connery impression.

“I thought the point was to dress as a murder mystery character,” Caleb said.

“There’s murders in Bond movies!” Beau shot back defensively, “Besides, at least I don’t look like a Sonic villain in a suit.”

Before Caleb could insult her back, the door swung open, revealing Jester. She was wearing a white button down, plaid skirt with a matching headband, and flats.

“Cay-leb, look at you! You’re Hercule Poirot!” she squealed with delight.

He could feel his face growing warmer as he smiled at her.

“Ja, and you’re Nancy Drew?”

“I sure am!” she said with a grin, “Come on, now we can start!”

Jester grabbed his hand and dragged him into the house, Fjord and Beau following behind them. The first thing Caleb noticed was the film noir style music that was playing throughout the house, which looked cleaner than he had ever seen it. Next, he noticed all of his friends and their various costumes.

“Everybody’s here now!” Jester squealed.

“That’s nice,” Caduceus said mildly, adjusting his too small Sherlock Holmes hat.

“So dinner first, and then the game, or the other way around?” Veth asked. Caleb would not have realized that she was wearing a costume and hadn’t simply stolen one of his sweaters if she hadn’t sent him a hundred screenshots of costumes from _Murder, She Wrote_ in the past week.

“The food will probably get cold if we wait until after the game,” Yasha pointed out, fidgeting with the wrinkled sleeve of her trench coat.

“Wait, Yasha, I thought you were going to be Velma from _Scooby Doo_?” Fjord asked.

“Yeah, but,” Yasha said with a sigh, “It was too colorful, so I’m Columbo, okay?”

“How about we eat?” Caduceus suggested.

“Sounds good to me,” Beau said with a shrug.

“Where’s Mollymauk?” Caleb asked, finally realizing that one of their friends was missing.

Yasha chuckled, no doubt aware of whatever bullshit her roommate was up to.

“Let’s just go to the dining room.”

As the group moved into the dining room, the music changed.

_You had plenty money in 1922…_

The dining room was exquisitely decorated just like a murder mystery manor, but Caleb could hardly pay attention to that.

_You let other women make a fool of you…_

Really, they should have expected something like this. Molly had been looking for an excuse to dress up again ever since the university production of _Kinky Boots_ had closed, and it seems like he had found one, as he was sprawled out on the table in a wig, heels, gloves that reached his elbows, and a glittering red dress.

“You make such a pretty Jessica Rabbit!” Jester squealed, clapping excitedly.

“Molly, get the fuck off the table,” Fjord said, far too used to his former roommate’s antics to be phased by any of this. Molly, for his part, stuck his tongue out at Fjord as he slid off the table.

“Alright, let’s get this party started!” Jester shouted.

**** 

Caleb loved sitting in this armchair. It felt fuzzy, a bit like his brain. What time was it? Probably late, but no one had left yet. Jester came up to him, sitting down on the arm of the armchair.

“Cay-leb, how are you feeling?” she asked gently.

He stared up at her, his heart racing as he realized just how close they were.

“So good,” he said with a grin, “So good.”

Jester smiled, though it didn’t quite reach her eyes. Well, that wasn’t good. Jester should be happy.

“Well, Caduceus is ready to go, and he wanted me to ask you if you wanted a ride.”

“Nein, ‘m fine, blueberry,” he mumbled.

“You’re not, Caleb, you’re not!” she cried, “You can stay here if you want, but I’m not going to let you drive tonight!”

There were tears in her eyes. He was making her upset. He was making her sad. He didn’t want that. He wanted to make her happy.

“Okay, I’m sorry,” he said, looking down at his lap.

She sniffed.

“You don’t need to apologize, Caleb, just… either go with Caduceus or stay with us, okay?”

“Okay,” he said, staring up at her, smiling. “You’re so pretty, blueberry,” he mumbled, “So pretty. I remember-I remember the first time we met, do you?”

Jester shook her head.

“The boy’s bathroom on our floor was broken, and it was only a couple weeks into our first semester of college, do you remember?”

“Ja, I remember,” she said with a smile. He smiled back.

“I had my first big test in my eight A.M. that morning and hadn’t slept. And I-I was taking a shower. And then somebody was playing ‘Dancing Queen’ of all things. When I stepped out, there you were, dancing to ABBA and using a curling iron as a microphone.”

Jester giggled, leaning in closer to him, her eyes twinkling in the low light. Oh, she was so beautiful. He could stay watching her forever if he was allowed.

“I hadn’t met you yet, any of you, we hadn’t spoken yet, but-“

“Wait! Didn’t I sing ‘Mamma Mia’ to you?”

Caleb smiled. “Ja. And-and I remember thinking that this girl… this girl was someone I wanted to get to know.”

“Oh,” she said, “You’re so sweet, Caleb.”

“We’re heading out, bitches!” Molly shouted, stumbling across the living room.

“Wait, let me give you a hug!” Jester cried, getting up.

****

Caleb stared into the bonfire that he and Beau had made in the backyard.

“Can you pass me a marshmallow?” Jester asked.

Caleb obliged before checking the time. Holy shit, it was already 3:30.

“I’m gonna go to bed,” Beau said, “Goodnight, you two.”

“Goodnight, Beau.”

“Goodnight.”

There was silence as Caleb continued to stare into the fire. On nights like this, when his brain was fuzzy, he liked watching the flames dance and cast shadows. It was pretty without the pain it normally brought.

“Cay-leb?”

He turned to Jester, who had a small piece of melted marshmallow on her cheek.

“Ja, blueberry?”

“Was- did you mean what you said earlier tonight, about when we first met?” Her voice was quiet. She looked nervous as she tried to avoid making eye contact. Something about the firelight made her seem even more beautiful than she already was, and that was pretty hard to do.

“Of course I did.”

She shimmied closer to him on the bench. Her arm was cold. Frowning, he took off his suit jacket and draped it over her shoulders.

“Thanks, Caleb,” she said, resting her head on his shoulder.

Oh, boy, they were so close. He could feel his heart pounding in his chest. _I love you, Jester Lavorre._

“What did you say?” she asked, pulling away from him.

Oh, shit, did he say that out loud?

“I’m sorry,” he mumbled, standing up.

“No, no, no, Caleb, I just- I didn’t expect that. I… I really like you too.”

“What?” He must have misheard her. He was drunk, after all.

“I really like you, Caleb. I have for… a while,” she said, blushing.

Jester stood up, taking his hand. Caleb felt his heart going a million miles a minute. She stood on her tiptoes and planted a kiss on his cheek, and Caleb felt his brain shut down.

“W-we should go to bed,” he mumbled, “Uh, but put out the fire first, of course.”

Jester grinned.

“I’ve got it, Caleb. You should go to bed, or else you’ll have one hell of a headache.”

Caleb grinned as he made his way back inside. He should probably take his suit off, but he was too giddy to care. Jester liked him! She actually liked him! He stumbled up the stairs.

“Dude, you okay?” Beau asked. She had changed out of her tuxedo and into a large t-shirt.

“Ja,” he said, still grinning, “Ja, so good.”

Beau eyed him suspiciously, but didn’t question it.

“Alright, well, you know where the guest room is,” she said, “G’night, man.”

“Goodnight,” he said, continuing to stumble towards the guest room. Nothing, not even the hangover he was sure to wake up with, could dampen his mood. Jester liked him back! What could make today better?

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading!


End file.
